The plane was almost on its back and was "spiraling down," resident Theresa Futa told WNDU.

"I've never seen anything like that before in my life ever."

A representative of the National Transportation Safety Board arrived late Sunday to investigate the crash.

The neighborhood of about 50 homes is under mandatory evacuation until at least 7 a.m. local time, officials said. Utilities were shut off as a precaution over concerns of a possible gas leak in the area.

Two shelters have been set up to house residents.

The plane left Tulsa, Oklahoma on Sunday afternoon, and was scheduled to land at South Bend Regional Airport about 80 minutes later at 4:20 p.m. ET, WNDU reported.

The troubled aircraft startled Shelby Ramirez, who was driving in the area.

"I happened to see the shadow and I said 'Oh my God. I've never seen a plane that low,'" Ramirez said. "And I would say if it was 3 feet above the top of the car it was something. It could have dropped on us."